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Australia’s federal government is set to introduce legislation this week requiring social media platforms to give users the option of disabling the recommendation algorithms that shape their feeds, the BBC reported on Sunday.
Communications Minister Anika Wells, who led last year’s world-first ban on social media for under-16s, announced the draft law under the banner of a “digital duty of care.” She told national broadcaster ABC that companies including Meta, TikTok and Google would be required to let users choose whether to receive algorithmically curated content or not.
Firms that fail to offer that choice could face fines exceeding A$100 million (around US$72 million), according to reporting from Al Jazeera and the South China Morning Post.
What the Draft Law Would Require
Wells told ABC that many Australians value the personalisation algorithms provide, whether for entertainment or for discovering local businesses. The goal is not to abolish recommendation systems but to make offering a genuine choice mandatory.
One design question remains open. The government is still taking expert advice on whether users would need to actively opt in to algorithmic feeds or whether the default would flip the other way, requiring a deliberate opt-out, as the BBC noted.
Beyond the algorithm toggle, the legislation would place a broader duty on platforms to identify and reduce harmful content. This includes illegal pornography and material promoting disordered eating.
For users under 18, Dexerto reported that around half a dozen additional categories of psycho-social harm, covering body image and online bullying, would receive specific attention under the bill.
Opposition Scepticism and Expert Pushback
Opposition leader Angus Taylor told ABC he had not yet seen the bill but was deeply sceptical, warning it could amount to government censorship of social media platforms.
Wells dismissed that characterisation directly, telling Channel Nine’s Today show that the law is about forcing platforms to identify and mitigate their own risks, not about controlling speech. Big Tech sees it differently.
Academic commentary flagged in The Conversation raises practical complications. Major platforms run multiple distinct algorithms simultaneously; Instagram alone operates separate systems for its main feed, Stories and Reels. Turning off one would leave others untouched.
Experts also noted that very few users are likely to exercise the opt-out, suggesting a stronger intervention would be to make chronological feeds the default and require users to actively choose algorithmic curation.
The Enforcement Gap From the Under-16 Ban
The legislation arrives as Australia continues to grapple with the limits of its existing social media law.
Under-16s were banned from platforms in December 2025, a move the UK, France and others have since adopted .
Data published last month showed that most Australian teenagers who were on Instagram and TikTok before the ban are still using them. No tech firm has been fined.
Wells acknowledged the enforcement gap, which the opposition has pointed to in questioning whether additional legislation would be any easier to enforce.